News

July 2009 - International Bottler & Packer

In these challenging economic times, responsible food and drink manufacturers are constantly striving for increased efficiency and reduced costs.

It is with those goals in mind that leading shrink sleeves manufacturer Clondalkin Flexible Packaging Bury has perfected its ‘sleeve and seal’ concept and has started introducing clients to its benefits.

The innovation and design team at Clondalkin Flexible Packaging Bury, which is also renowned internationally for its lid production, is aiming to make the bottling and packing process less time-consuming and use fewer resources but still add real benefits for brand promotion.

It comes on the back of a £2m investment by the company in shrink sleeve technology, including a DCM sleeving machine with hot melt adhesive application, a DCM Babycat inspection system and temperature controlled storage areas for raw materials.

Kursat Uysal, business development manager said, "Sleeve and seal reflected food and drink producers’ desire to make cost-savings without comprising the appeal of its brands, particularly in the sauces and drinks market.

“Sleeve and seal is the forward-thinking method to add extra value to products in the food, beverage and dairy sectors,” he said.

“There’s a need for businesses to get smarter when designing their packaging and explore new methods that cut out inefficient production processes that arise from using the traditional label and separate tamper-proof function. Producers can save money and time as well as adopting a modern, updated look for their products with sleeve and seal.”

Sleeve and seal involves the traditional label and tamper proof neck band being replaced by an all-in-one OPS, PET, PVC or PLA substrate sleeve. It allows for 360 degree, top-to-toe decoration which vastly increases the surface area available for brand messages.

It also combines visual appeal with tamper evidence capabilities and practicality. The sleeve is printed on a transparent substrate and there is also scope for visibility windows as well as scuff and scratch resistance barriers.

Applied in one application, sleeve and seal cuts out unnecessary production processes and saves extra resources by reducing the need to deal with multiple suppliers of labels and lid seals.

Coupled with click-top screw lids for bottled products, sleeve and seal can provide optimum tamper-proof features. Perforations can also be applied vertically down the side of the sleeve for ease of recycling.

Mr Uysal added: “This is likely to be a real growth area over the coming years, particularly in the UK where this kind of approach is only just starting to catch on compared to the United States and mainland Europe.

“Products like the sleeve and seal range are being increasingly used in most parts of Europe where businesses are finding smarter ways of working, and our aim is to bring the UK to the forefront of development within the packaging industry.

“As the recession goes on, businesses are increasingly looking for new ways of working. Investing the time, money and resources into exploring new concepts can reap generous rewards and inject a new lease of life into products so that they stand out from the competition and jump off the shelves. Sleeve and seal achieves exactly that.

“We’re always looking to the future and coming up with new, innovative ideas for each one of our customers. We’ve completed a series of trials to test the market and gauge where our clients want the range to progress and the feedback has been very encouraging.

“We’ve got a committed design team which is able to react to different demands and vary the offer to reflect what is required. Then there is back up provided once production is underway to ensure everything runs smoothly so there is every reason to be confident that the sleeve and seal will become very popular.”

Clondalkin Flexible Packaging Bury is the new name for european shrink sleeves leader Chadwicks.